Since the Black Hawk burst onto the scene in 1979, it has evolved into the world's greatest military helicopter ever.

Black Hawk - Sunset

Black Hawk - Firing

The Black Hawk is a utility and assault helicopter designed for a whole range of missions including the transportation of troops, electronic warfare, medical evacuation (medevac) and ferrying of cargo.

See full specifications for more details.

The latest version of the Black Hawk, the UH-60M, has an integrated digital avionics suite providing enhanced situational awareness and operability with the Future Combat System (FCS).

Mogadishu, Somalia, October 3, 1993.

Black Hawk - Formation

Black Hawk - Delta Team

A swarm of Black Hawk UH-60 helicopters loaded with Rangers are heading for the headquarters of the Habr Gidr clan in the heart of Mogadishu to support a Delta Force raid to arrest the top lieutenants of the renegade warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid.

Barely 40 minutes into the mission, Black Hawk helicopter Super 61 is hit by an RPG and crashes five blocks away from the target building. Within 20 minutes Black Hawk helicopter Super 64 is brought down by another RPG and all hell breaks loose.

Read the gripping story of a routine mission gone wrong at inquirer.philly.com/packages/somalia.